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Laments, Psalms, and Contemplations
for Global Healthcare Workers

There are times when the intensity of human suffering we attend to is heart numbing. There are moments when we understandably fear but need to buckle up and manage a crisis. And, there are soul wrenching decisions we abhor to make. In all of this we wonder...where is God? What on earth is he doing? How do we reach out when what we have to offer is not necessarily "nice." This blog is trying to find a voice, steeped in the tradition of biblical faith.

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God of the Poor and Needy, a Psalm

4/10/2020

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Lord, our God, you are a God of compassion. You care about the poor and needy. Their calls reach your ear and move your heart. We praise and worship you for that, oh God!

Lord, we are grateful that this pandemic initially mostly affected countries with more resources, given those with less means time to prepare. Now we see the increasing spread in these countries. Lord have mercy! Lord, protect, equip, give leaders wisdom, and people the understanding to do, what they can do. Give them discernment to decide, what works best for them. We plead for added remedies for support, treatment, and care! We dread, what we can imagine could happen to the vulnerable and poor. Lord help! Please allow them to obtain needed protective materials, resources for medical care, send helping hands, people, whose heart you move and empower to come to their aid.  

Thank you for hearing our cries for mercy, God! Your unfailing love gives us hope . Your presence gives us comfort and peace. Thank you for your unchanging love, whose mysteries we cannot fathom. 
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Psalm 91 ESV - A Pandemic Psalm

4/2/2020

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My Refuge and My Fortress
91 He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty.
2 I will say to the Lord, “My refuge and my fortress,my God, in whom I trust.”
3 For he will deliver you from the snare of the fowler and from the deadly pestilence.
4 He will cover you with his pinions, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness is a shield and buckler.
5 You will not fear the terror of the night, nor the arrow that flies by day,
6 nor the pestilence that stalks in darkness, nor the destruction that wastes at noonday.
7 A thousand may fall at your side, ten thousand at your right hand, but it will not come near you.
8 You will only look with your eyes and see the recompense of the wicked.
9 Because you have made the Lord your dwelling place-- the Most High, who is my refuge --
10 no evil shall be allowed to befall you, no plague come near your tent.
11 For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways.
12 On their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone.
13 You will tread on the lion and the adder; the young lion and the serpent you will trample underfoot.
14 “Because he holds fast to me in love, I will deliver him; I will protect him, because he knows my name.
15 When he calls to me, I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will rescue him and honor him.
16 With long life I will satisfy him and show him my salvation.”

Sons of Korah singing Psalm 91
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Pandemic Psalms, and how we can pray or write one

3/31/2020

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In times of trouble many turn to the psalms in the Bible. The psalms capture all the colors of human emotion: Longing, amazement, praise, joy, exhilaration, comfort, and contentment, and often in the very same psalm disillusionment, doubt, fear, pain, sorrow, frustration, hate, and desires for revenge. If we look for it, we will find a reflection of our hearts in one of the psalms. There is even a psalm that resonates with our desire for refuge and shelter in a pandemic: Psalm 91, which you can read in the next post.

May Psalm 91 inspire you to pray or write your own psalm:
a. Start with what you have come to know about God, his character and faithfulness;
b. then, talk to God, tell Him how you can see his known character and faithfulness come alive in the threats you face right now and what you can imagine him doing in light of his nature and promises;
c. ponder your relationship with God in the midst of this threat, how his love and power can come into play, and connect with his enduring love for you and yours, which is a love and security that transcends time into eternity. Can you see his face shine upon you, more tender and strong than the most loving smile you have ever encountered from a loved one? (If you would like help imagining God's smiling compassion, here is a link to two persons singing the Aaronic blessing to each other.  Awesome smiles!)
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    Editor and Author
    Frauke Schaefer, MD - family physician, who served in Nepal, then turned psychiatrist and counselor to support those in high stress environments.
    This blog seeks to capture various voices from global settings. 

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